Before You Eat That Turkey

I’ll never forget my first Thanksgiving
back in the United States after living in South Africa for most of my
childhood.Nearly 20 aunts, uncles
and cousins gathered around my Aunt Lou’s dining room tables in Upstate New
York.At an early age I discovered
her tender heart, noting that she’d choke up as we took turns reading the
Scriptures on gratitude that she had carefully penned and placed in front of
our plates.Oh, how proud I am to
share a piece of her name!

Aunt Lou has celebrated
nearly ten thanksgivings in Heaven now, and that torch of spiritual training
has been passed down the generations.I vividly recall the year I was convicted to live a life of
intentionality in our home; challenged to no longer assume my kids would pick
up my faith simply because we shared an address.Nope -- no faith by osmosis here.If I wanted my children to learn the virtue of
gratitude, I needed to teach it.

I’ll admit it was a bit awkward
the first year I posted the 11 x 14 “I AM
THANKFUL FOR…..” sheet on our refrigerator a week before Thanksgiving.There were some rolled eyes and
shrugged shoulders, but I promptly announced that we were not eating any turkey
until all 20 lines were filled in!A day or two later I was relieved to see that somebody had anonymously plunged
in and taken the first step (actually, I think it was my husband….thanks,
Steve!) And slowly, the page began
to fill up:“I am thankful for my teacher, Mrs. Royal……for this warm house…..our
new puppy…our church.”

The next year I took a
bigger step and widened the circle.In preparation for my brothers’ arrival with their wives and children, I
typed up slips of paper with each family member’s name on them followed by a
blank:“I am thankful for Kaleb because ­­­­­­­­­­­_________.”“I am thankful for Uncle Chip because
__________.” As each person entered, they drew a folded slip out of the
basket.Once again, sorry --
turkey dinner was on hold until everyone had completed their slip and returned
it to the container!

After dessert and a football
game, we gathered in the living room and passed the basket around the
circle.One by one we reached
in and randomly pulled out a paper to read aloud: “I am thankful for Brittany because she’ll play Legos with me even when
she’s tired.”“I am thankful for Aunt
Karen because of her enormous heart for young moms.”I loved seeing the faces of the younger
children light up in anticipation as their name was read and their character publicly
honored.Oh how a simple phrase of
affirmation buoys the spirit, eh?!

This year, let’s commit to
being intentional.So what if it
feels cliché!What have we got to
lose?And when your teenage nephew
refuses to participate because he thinks it’s lame, simply have someone else
double up and fill it out on his behalf.After all, there’s a good chance he’ll be lurking around the kitchen corner,
listening in as his name is read and he discovers for the first time that
somebody in the family appreciates his knack for always fixing the computer
when it’s broken -- or thinks he’s one pretty amazing big brother.

So next Thursday, why not
top off that pumpkin pie with a healthy dose of favor and honor, intentionally
sprinkled among those we hold dear. Paul summed it up well in his letter to the Romans:“Be
devoted to one another in brotherly love.Honor one another above yourselves.”(Romans 12:10)